Category Archives: Africa

Wyles Walkabout

Egypt…

Posted on by

Now I have ‘done’ Morocco, it was time to move on to country number two on my walkabout, Egypt. I have visited Egypt many times before but always on a diving holiday to the Red Sea. This time I am determined to see more of what Egypt is famous for, things like the Pyramids, The Sphinx, Luxor, Karnak, Valley of the Kings and of course, The Nile, but I will squeeze in a weeks diving too – as I am here…

It was about a 5hr flight from Casablanca to Cairo on EgyptAir and it was a comfortable flight which included a meal service and had quite a decent inflight entertainment system too. I was pleasantly surprised.

Once in Cairo, there was no let up in the heat, again close to 40 degrees centigrade. The transfer from the airport to my hotel took approx 1hour in what was I can only describe as a cross between MarioKart, WRC, a demolition derby and a free for all. The drive was not a nice relaxing experience. The ring road was crazy fast and had no logical order. Seems if there was a gap, no matter how small between you and the car infront, fill it before someone else does and whoever has the loudest horn has priority. There were flat bed trucks transporting people (unsecured and in excess of 70mph), even saw a Lada fitted with an aftermarket spoiler – why? Occasionally there was a speed bump on the motorway, no warning or anything and everyone brakes at the last second. I can only assume the observation of the drivers is second to none but in saying that I did not see one car without any damage, scratches, dents or bits missing.

It was an absolute relief to arrive at the hotel for the night in Giza, Pyramids View. As the name suggests, you can see the Pyramids from the hotel and they did not disappoint. It was dark when I arrived and had just missed the light and sound show but still an impressive sight. A lot of people say look the other way when at the Pyramids and you’ll see fast food outlets – and they are right. Shame really, but after all those tajines in Morocco, I did treat myself to a KFC and a beer.

I only spent 1 night in Cairo as next day, I was heading to the Red Sea diving resort of Sharm El Sheikh. I have been there a few times before and it was nice to return and meet up with some old friends. I know in recent years, the tourist industry in Sharm has declined following terrorist activity and shark ‘attacks’, but it was nice to see it slowly on up again. As a result, the reefs are recovering and the marine life thriving as it is not being ‘over-dived’.

I was in Sharm for just over a week, diving 5 days and it was amazing. It was nearly 20 years ago that I first dived in Sharm and this is where I fell in love with diving. It was even more amazing to be diving on my birthday and witnessing such beautiful marine life in its natural environment. Thanks to professional underwater photographer, Cinzia Osele, for taking these pictures of me.

Now back in Cairo and am about to start exploring what else this country has to offer.

Wyles Walkabout

Accommodation in Morocco

Posted on by

This is a directory of the places of where I stayed in Morocco with links to the hotels website if you are interested in taking a look. The hotels that don’t have a website can be found through the usual travel booking websites such as Expedia etc. There is a map showing where I travelled to in Morocco below the list of hotels and riads.

In general, all of the hotels were in a decent central location near to the major sites, were clean, quiet, comfortable, had free decent WiFi (mostly) and worth the money paid. In my opinion, the riads though were more ‘authentic’ and actually felt more Moroccan than most of the hotels and if you come to Morocco, I would encourage you to stay in a Riad not only because they are beautiful, the hospitality and welcome is genuine and not experienced in any hotel.

Breakfasts served in all of them were a good continental style with fresh fruits, juice, breads, pastries and eggs, but sometimes the coffee was questionable. Some evening meals, although good, became a little repetitive with meat or vegetable tajines and cous cous on offer so it made a nice alternative to eat out or visit a local shop to buy some snacks (bread, cheese, tomatoes etc.) and eat in the hotel’s lobby.

Morocco being a Muslim country, alcohol is not freely available in every restaurant or hotel, but is available to buy in ‘secret’ bottle shops or in a separate section of a Carrefour supermarket. Just be sure to check with the hotel if they allow you to drink it on their premises first.

Marrakech
Riad Andalouse ****

Hotel el Andalous ****

Riad Jardin D’Abdou ****

Casablanca
Moroccan House Hotel ***

Meknes
Hotel Akouas ***

Chefchaouen
Hotel Tarek **

Fes
Hotel Arena ***

Midelt
Hotel Kasbah Asmaa ***

Todra Gorge
Kasbah Amazir ***

Ait Benhaddou
La Rose du Sable **

Essaouira
Hotel Miramar ***

Wyles Walkabout

Back in Marrakech

Posted on by

It seems ages since we left Marrakech but it was only a couple of weeks ago. Perhaps instead of the excitement and anticipation of looking forward to the upcoming adventure, it was a little more sad because everyone, now good friends, would be leaving soon, breaking up the group heading home back to their familiar lives and work. Fortunately we had a day lounging by the pool, soaking up the unbearably hot Moroccan sun with a few cold beers, followed by a night out for one last meal together. Good news is there was not a tajine in sight which we were all thankful for, plus it was at a particularly swanky hotel and we all felt a little underdressed. No doubt about it, the food was magnificent. I had a penne pasta with tomatoe and mozzarella and it was really, really delicious. Eating that, I could have been anywhere in the world but it was so good, I really didn’t care about my location.

The next day, after a few good byes, headed into town and the main square (Jemaa el Fnaa) in Marrakech and found a bar with a high vantage point to people watch, drink non alcoholic, ice cold fruit cocktails and sat there waiting for the sun to set and for all the vendors to start trading in earnest. It’s just too hot during the day. The square comes alive just before sunset with people selling juice, fruit, smokey BBQ’s and grills selling all sorts of meat including sheeps head, there are women offering henna tattoos, snake charmers, monkey wranglers etc. It’s an assault on the senses becoming overwhelming in the heat. I do feel quite sorry for the animals made to perform for tourists, wings clipped or kept on a short leash in pretty horrid conditions, but I guess the animals probably don’t know any other ‘life’. Amongst all the hustle and bustle, I found it quite claustrophobic and an invasion of personal space. Every vendor is shouting at you, running to meet you carrying a menu trying to invite you over but as adventurous as I am, I just didn’t fancy paying to play with a cobra or eat a sheeps head. Call me old fashioned…

Having changed from the hotel to a riad (Riad Le Jardin D’Abdou), I was so grateful to get back to the peace and tranquility. As before, the riad was in the medina in an old part of the town, about 15mins walk away from the tourist hot spots. I felt quite isolated in the area, maybe it was paranoia more than anything but I did feel vulnerable. I tried not to let it show by walking and looking confident which helped my frame of mind a lot. This is true in any city even back home. The thing is, everyone I have met here has been very helpful, friendly and welcoming, Moroccan people are so hospitable. Having said that, if you wander the souks and medinas with a guide, the storeholders tend to leave you alone. But venture in by yourself later on, then you become their ’prey’ – and they will pester you to visit their shop, but perhaps not as aggressive as those in Egypt though. I made it successfully back to the Riad which was an absolute joy to find. Staying there, I felt like royalty or if I had won the lottery. I could not have asked for a nicer place to stay (except for the location). It really makes you wonder what is behind all the other scuzzy looking doors you walk past…

Next day, I visited a place I have wanted for visit for some time now and as I had a day to kill before I caught my train to Casablanca, I visited Le Jardin Majorelle. I have seen it a few times on gardening shows and magazines etc., and it always looked good. You know sometimes when you see something on TV and you visit it and it doesn’t live up to expectations? Well, this was the complete opposite. It exceeded all my expectations. Even with some of it closed off for further development, it was amazing. I had a couple of hours to explore and it was so much more than just an ornamental garden. I was extremely grateful for the shade offered by the plants too, I could have easily spent longer. If ever you visit Marrakech, please visit Le Jardin Majorelle. You will not regret it.

Today, I checked out of the riad and caught the train from Marrakech to Casablanca. I got a first class ticket for 148 dirhams (about £12) and shared the cabin with 6 other people from Morocco, France and Algeria and we chatted for the whole journey of about 250km / 3-4 hours. I cannot get a return from Wokingham to London for less than £25 and in a carriage where nobody talks to anyone. We’ve got it so wrong in England.